


Giving Head to the Institute's Head

by Takara_Phoenix



Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Anal, Bottom Jace, Cock Warming, Dom Alec, Dom Magnus, Explicit Sexual Content, Hurt/Comfort, Jace Feels, Light BDSM, M/M, Misunderstandings, Multi, Oral, Polyamory, Polyamory Negotiations, Protective Clary, Protective Simon, Semi-Public Sex, Shounen-ai, Slash, Sub Jace, Threesome - M/M/M, Top Magnus, Use Your Words, really very light, sick jace
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-07
Updated: 2017-06-07
Packaged: 2018-11-10 04:49:35
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 15,185
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11120250
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Takara_Phoenix/pseuds/Takara_Phoenix
Summary: After a drunk night of passion, Alec and Magnus invite Jace into their relationship. Only that Jace barely even remembers that drunk night of passion. He thinks that what they have is only sex.And that's just where the misunderstandings start, really. Because they just keep piling up until Clary and Simon are fed up and set the boys straight.





	Giving Head to the Institute's Head

Malace || Shadowhunters || Giving Head to the Institute's Head || Shadowhunters || Malace

Title: Giving Head to the Institute's Head – Why Alec's Boyfriends are Bad for his Health

Fandom: Shadowhunters: The Mortal Instruments

Disclaimer: All rights to the Shadowhunters reserved to Ed Decter, the books the Shadowhunters is based off and its characters belong to Cassandra Clare. This fanfiction on the other hand is entirely mine. No money is made with this, though reviews are more than welcomed.

Warnings: shounen-ai, polyamory (threesome), poly negotiations, misunderstanding, hurt/comfort, fluff, explicit intercourse, oral, anal, semi-public sex, light hints of BDSM, hetero

Main Pairing: Magnus/Alec/Jace

Side Pairing: Simon/Clary

Shadowhunters Characters: Jonathan Christopher 'Jace' Wayland, Magnus Bane, Alexander Gideon 'Alec' Lightwood, Lydia Branwell, Clarissa Adele 'Clary' Fray, Simon Lewis

Summary: Alec has everything he ever wanted. He's the head of the Institute and he is dating not just one gorgeous man he loves, but two. Somehow, and if he's honest he's still a bit unsure about the exact how, him and Magnus had fallen into a poly relationship with Jace. It was still pretty new, so Alec was still trying to get used to finding Jace under his desk... he doubted he ever would.

**Giving Head to the Institute's Head**

_Why Alec's Boyfriends are Bad for his Health_

Alec went rigid in his chair as he heard his zipper go down. His eyes widened and he frantically looked up at Lydia opposite of him. The other Shadowhunter was busy staring at the files in front of her, still going on about one thing or another – Alec found it very hard to concentrate when he could feel greedy lips mouthing at his crotch. Alec coughed as he choked on air.

"Everything alright, Alec?", asked Lydia as she looked up.

"Y—Yeah. Just...", started Alec and cleared his throat awkwardly. "Let's continue."

Alec loved being head of the Institute, finally, after all those years of being groomed into being exactly that. The only one who seemed to enjoy Alec's new position even more was his parabatai. Alec gritted his teeth hard as he could feel those plump lips wrap around his already hardened cock. Jace _loved_ the large, heavy desk in the office. Most of the time to hide beneath the desk and give Alec a blowjob at the _most inappropriate times_. Like while Alec had a meeting with Lydia to get updated on how things in Idris were progressing. Alec bit the inside of his cheek to keep himself from moaning as Jace's tongue brought him closer and closer to his orgasm. His grip on the armrest of his chair was so tight, he nearly broke it. The same could be said about Jace's throat though; it felt so tight, Alec was pretty sure his dick should break under the pressure. He was never going to get used to Jace's oral fixation, he just knew that would be the death of him. With the smallest groan did Alec come down that tight throat, filling his lover's mouth.

"...You sure you're okay, Alec?", asked Lydia a bit worried.

"I just... stubbed my toe", grunted Alec, trying to subtly catch his breath. "I'm fine."

"Very well. I think we're done here. You're not very focused anyway", stated Lydia, with just an edge of judgment as she raised one eyebrow at him. "Give my regards to your family."

"Of course", nodded Alec with a small smile.

He was very fond of Lydia and over the years, they had formed a deep friendship actually. He took a shaky sigh and sacked down in his chair as Lydia left the room. A he pushed himself off his desk some, he glared pointedly at the blonde beneath it. Which was really hard, because Jace's hair was messed up, his lips were red and swollen and there was still a bit of Alec's cum in the corner of Jace's mouth. When Jace looked like that and sat at Alec's feet, looking up at Alec with those mischievous, mismatched eyes from beneath his lashes, it was downright impossible to stay mad.

"Jace...", groaned Alec frustrated. "Please. Just... Why? Why?"

"Because I can", declared Jace cheekily as he slowly crawled out from underneath the desk to instead climb into Alec's lap and get comfortable there. "Besides, this one was on Mag."

Alec tried to concentrate on the words, but Jace had that way of straddling his lap and grinding down on him that just distracted Alec from anything, including the apocalypse. Blinking slowly, Alec wrapped his arms around Jace's waist to rest his hands on the blonde's ass, making Jace groan and push back into his parabatai's grip. Jace just generally loved being touched.

"How was you giving me a blowjob on Magnus?", asked Alec confused.

"Well", drawled Jace as he licked a broad stripe up Alec's neck before tugging on his earlobe with his teeth. "He says he's sorry that he won't be able to make it to the date tonight and that you should instead thoroughly enjoy your gorgeous, handsome parabatai."

"Puppy", corrected Alec a bit amused. "There's no way he said 'gorgeous, handsome parabatai'."

"...Yeah, puppy, whatever", huffed Jace, embarrassed by the nickname Magnus had given him.

The amusement turned into exasperation though as Alec leaned back in his chair. "That's the third time in a row that he's bailing. I know he's busy with his High Warlock business, especially these days, but..." Alec paused to heave a sigh, looking at the still teasing blonde in his lap who kept nibbling on Alec's neck and ear and jawline. "Doesn't it bother _you_?"

Jace paused to look up at Alec with a bit of confusion written all over his face. "Nah. He lets me sleep with his boyfriend, I'm not gonna nag him. Besides, like you said, he _is_ busy."

Alec snorted and leaned back in his chair, pulling Jace against his chest. Magnus was busy, it wasn't his fault, but still... Ever since they had moved from a couple to being a threesome, they hadn't had a single proper date. Something always came up. May it be Alec being busy in Idris, Magnus having to attend some kind of High Warlock business, or Jace being too injured from a mission to do anything but lay down and let Magnus fix him up again. As much as Alec had always dreamed of being head of the Institute, there was an aspect he disliked about it. He downright loathed not going in the field with his parabatai anymore. Not being able to have Jace's back. Not getting enough fight in for himself anymore. Yes, he still occasionally went out with Jace and the others, but he was just too busy with his own new duties. That not just put Alec out of reach to protecting his parabatai, it also messed up their schedules. Alec had to get up at the rise of dawn, while Jace still slept because the blonde got home very late at night from his mission.

/break\

"I'm very sorry for not making it", whispered Magnus gently as he sneaked into bed.

Alec smiled just a little when he received a kiss from his warlock. He casually put his book down and removed his glasses to put them aside too. Resting a hand in Magnus' neck, he pulled the shorter man closer to deepen their kiss. Magnus hummed in appreciation.

"I know you're busy with restoring everything, helping the warlocks find a home again and assuring them that they are safe and... well, so much more, but...", sighed Alec with a forlorn look on his face. "We haven't had a date since before Jace joined our relationship. And part of me is wondering, are you really that busy or is it something else, Magnus?"

"Whatever else could it be?", asked Magnus confused, one eyebrow raised.

"Well, you know just how many years I've wanted Jace and... are you maybe just trying to give me and Jace more one on one time because of that?", guessed Alec with a frown. "Or is it because of Jace in general? If you only offered all of this because of me and you don't actually-"

"Let me stop you right there, darling", interrupted Magnus a bit amused, resting two fingers against Alec's lips. "I wouldn't start a relationship with someone if I didn't _want_ them. And to your first concern, believe me, I am far too selfish to leave my pretty boys alone that much. If anything, I'd at the very least want to _watch_. I know the timing is bad, but I can't change it. I promise, we will make up for it. Once things settle down, I will take both my Shadowhunters on a vacation."

"That sounds nice", hummed Alec pleased as he stole another lazy kiss.

"Say, where _is_ our pretty blonde?", inquired Magnus curiously.

"He's on a mission", sighed Alec. "It'll be a couple hours before he'll be back home."

"Well then, why don't you go to sleep? I'll wait for him", offered Magnus gently.

There was something in the way Magnus talked about them, compared to how Jace had spoken about them, that made Alec pause. He frowned as he mulled things over. How Magnus so nearly possessively spoke of Alec _and_ Jace as his. But how Jace had spoken of Alec as Magnus' boyfriend. Not theirs. How Jace had just shrugged the ditched dates off like they didn't concern him. Maybe Alec was reading too much into this all, but he had a really bad feeling about it.

"Magnus?", whispered Alec after a while of just laying together.

"Mh? What is it, darling?", asked Magnus gently.

"I... I'm not so sure about this, but I _think_ that... Jace might not know that you're dating", voiced Alec reluctantly before pausing. "No. Actually, I think he doesn't know that _we_ are dating."

"What does that even mean?", inquired Magnus confused.

"I don't know", sighed Alec and shook his head. "It's just... something I noticed today. Something he's been doing for the past two weeks now. Just... the way he speaks. I asked him earlier if it didn't bother him that you ditched our date _again_ and he said that you let him sleep with _your_ boyfriend so he wasn't going to nag you about anything. He didn't make it sound like the date concerned him at all, as though... he hadn't realized that it was supposed to be a date between all three of us, it sounded more like you ditched me and he just came to give me a blowjob."

Magnus adapted a thoughtful frown as he tried to think of anything in the past two weeks that would prove this assumption wrong. But if anything, he could only think of strangely phrased things that fit Alec's observations. The warlock sighed in exhaustion.

"Okay. Screw that. The magical world will be just fine for a day without me. How about you?"

"I... guess I could ask Lydia to take over tomorrow? She's staying at the Institute for a few days", mused Alec with a frown. "You sure about that though?"

"Well, I won't let one of my boyfriends think he's just a nice accessory for the bedroom and leave the other to keep worrying about it", stated Magnus simply. "I mean, I can see how being drunk and falling in bed with each other might not have been the romantic start for a relationship that it should have been and perhaps... that did give him the impression that this is a strictly sexual thing. That we haven't had the chance to go on proper dates yet didn't exactly help, did it?"

"Okay, good", nodded Alec pleased and pecked Magnus' lips before getting up.

"Where are you going?", asked Magnus confused.

"Back to the Institute. Ask Lydia to fill in for me, adjust some of the appointments that I have that I should personally attend and then maybe if I'm lucky, I get to pick Jace up and bring him home with me", replied Alec while getting dressed. "You don't need to wait up, you know."

"Or I could come with you", suggested Magnus with one raised eyebrow. "You talk to Lydia and I go and track down our stray puppy. Not to mention, portals. So practical."

To prove his point, the warlock summoned a portal. Alec rolled his eyes but agreed. That would be faster and if Magnus would go and track down Jace while Alec talked to Lydia, then all three of them would be back in the nice, warm bed within the hour.

/break\

They didn't make it back to the nice, warm bed within the hour. At least not all three of them. Magnus frowned displeased as him and Alec stepped back through the portal together, but without their blonde. While Lydia was easily found and willing to take over for Alec – personally, she thought that he was shouldering too much as it stood and that he was in dire need of a day off – Jace was nowhere to be found. Lydia informed them that when Isabelle had returned, she had said something about him heading straight home instead of to the Institute. Which, okay, made sense.

Only that when Magnus and Alec stepped through the portal back into their bedroom, the bed was exactly the way they had left it. The two exchanged a frown before venturing deeper into the loft. Alec went to see if maybe Jace was in the kitchen getting some food – they all knew Jace often forgot to eat when there was any kind of mission he could focus on. Magnus all the while went to check the bathroom, which was just as empty. Magnus sighed frustrated. All he had wanted to do when he came home that night was to curl together in bed with his Shadowhunters and fall asleep. The day had been draining after all. He paused in the hall and more by accident caught glimpse of something in the guestroom. Frowning, Magnus pushed the door fully open just to find Jace curled together on the bed, soaking wet and shivering.

"Oh, honey", sighed Magnus and shook his head as he sat down next to the blonde. "What are you doing _here_? And why are you dripping wet? Come on, up, puppy."

"Too tired to get changed. Didn't wanna ruin your bed", mumbled Jace, voice slurred from exhaustion as he allowed Magnus to manhandle him into an upright position and start tugging on Jace's shirt. "...You weren't there anyway. Figured you went on your date after all, so I thought I'd sleep here so you don't need to be quiet when you got home."

Magnus paused as he listened a little more closely to how Jace phrased things. Your bed. Not our bed. Your date. Not our date – well, not to mention that he had assumed Magnus and Alec would be going alone. So yes, Alec's little hypothesis proved to be true after all, he supposed. How upsetting.

"Alexander", called Magnus out. "I found our stray puppy. Come and bring towels and a robe."

"...What?", called Alec back confused, but obediently came with the requested items. "Oh. Damn it, Jace. You could catch a cold if you go to bed in wet clothes. Not to mention how annoying it is to make the bed because _someone_ decided to sleep dripping wet. What are you even doing _here_?"

"Our puppy didn't want to get our bed wet and since we weren't home, he assumed that you and I went on our date", replied Magnus with a displeased note to his voice.

Alec frowned and searched for Magnus' eyes, finding the confirmation he needed but really didn't want. Sighing exasperated, Alec joined Magnus and helped him pry the wet clothes off of Jace's body. The blonde was so exhausted, he just let it happen, head lolling to the side and resting against Alec's chest while the archer dried him off with the fluffy towels. Thankfully enough, Alec had also brought the bathrobe. The fluffy one Magnus had specifically bought for Jace, because the blonde was very fond of soft, fluffy things but would never actually voice that or buy any such things for himself, so the warlock had taken it upon himself to just randomly provide them in the loft. It had been one of the first things where Magnus started to realize that he might be falling for the blonde.

"I'm going to change the sheets before the mattress gets completely soaked. You bring Jace to bed?"

"Will do, darling", agreed Magnus, briefly kissing Alec's cheek before gathering the blonde up.

Jace made a noise of protest as he was being carried bridal style out of the guestroom and to the master bedroom, but it appeared that tonight's mission had been too straining to leave any room for vocal protests, much less for actually _walking_ himself. Magnus was a bit worried. Ever since the war had officially ended, since Alec took over as head of the Institute, Jace seemed so very obsessed with tracking down every last Circle member to snuff out the Circle before it might return as it had done before. Magnus understood the sentiment, he too would prefer to get rid of it in total – the leisure way the Clave had handled the Circle before, with allowing basically every single Circle member free reign to infiltrate the Institute and the Citadel of the Iron Sisters, it had been a catastrophe and had only made the war harder than it needed to be. But Magnus disliked seeing someone he cared for so deeply run themselves into the ground like that.

/break\

Jace blinked bleary-eyed as he came to it in the morning. For a moment, he was a bit disoriented. He knew he had gone to his bedroom last night. Well, originally he had gone to the master bedroom, happy and eager to just take a quick shower and then curl together in the warm bed with Magnus and Alec. But the couple hadn't been there. Dejected, Jace figured they had gone on their date after all and suddenly, he wasn't too motivated anymore. He skipped the shower and just collapsed face-first on his bed in his room. The thought of being in their bed by the time the couple would return from their date, all happy and glowy... Jace didn't think he'd be able to handle that.

He still couldn't believe that he now got to have sex with Alec. But Alec and Magnus hadn't gone on a date yet since that fateful night where the three of them had fallen into bed together, all drunk off their asses. When Jace had woken up in the morning, he had wanted to sneak out without waking either of the other two, hopeful they might just be drunk enough to not remember the past night had happened at all so Magnus wouldn't feel like kicking him out of the loft for taking advantage of a drunk Alec like that, but then Alec had already been awake and just casually pulled Jace into a deep kiss. And okay. Jace could totally live with that. Somehow, sex had become a thing after that. The blonde still wasn't really sure about Magnus, but there had been some pretty deep kisses between them too, so Jace guessed the warlock was keeping the option open to also sleep with Jace? Not that Jace would be objecting to that; from what he remembered from their first night, Magnus was _good_.

But ever since sex had become a thing they could do, Jace had grown kind of doubtful how well he would handle seeing Alec and Magnus happy together, in a romantic sense. It had been easy enough to see them happy before, mainly so because Jace wanted Alec to be happy. But now? Now, he was becoming greedy. Jealous. It was an ugly emotion and he hated it, but he just couldn't help it. He wanted _more_ , more than they gave him, more than he should want, more than he deserved.

So when he woke up in _their_ bed in the morning, he was just a little confused. Especially since he was not wearing his wet clothes anymore, but rather one of the fancy and ridiculously comfortable silken pajamas Magnus owned. A slight blush graced his cheeks as he buried his nose in the collar, inhaling Magnus' scent clinging to the shirt. He liked the way Magnus smelt. Blinking a couple of times, Jace looked around a little in confusion, because he was alone in bed.

Okay, now that he was a little more awake, he remembered being woken by a displeased Magnus, being wrestled out of his clothes and toweled dry by the couple like he was a literal puppy who had been playing in a puddle and now needed his masters to take care of him and chide him for his behavior. Just great. Groaning softly, Jace rolled onto his back and sprawled his arms out.

"You're awake", stated Alec displeased, frown on his face.

Jace blinked and stared at his parabatai in confusion. Why was Alec upset that Jace was awake? Well, the archer was carrying a tray filled with what looked like quite the large breakfast. Jace's eyes found the alarm clock on Magnus' side of the bed. It was shortly after ten in the morning. What was Alec even still _doing_ at home? And with breakfast in... Oh. If Alec somehow had the morning off, then so did Magnus probably and maybe the two wanted to spend a romantic morning together. So was Alec displeased because Jace was awake but still in their bed?

"Sorry", grunted Jace as he slowly sat up to get out of their bedroom.

"Did... you just apologize for being awake?", asked Alec befuddled.

"I don't know?", offered Jace, a little lost as he paused and looked at the taller Shadowhunter. "You kinda made it sound like an accusation? I'm too tired to decipher your nuances, Alec. What are you even still doing here? Shouldn't you like be at the Institute by now?"

Snorting, Alec put the tray down on the nightstand. "I took the day off."

"We both did", corrected Magnus with a pleased look on his face as he entered the bedroom in his robes. "We both took the day off. Today, we're going to have a lazy, romantic day."

Jace felt his heart sink and his stomach turn to lead at that before he forced himself to get off the bed after all. "Right. I'll just... leave you to it then."

Magnus heaved a disappointed sigh and Alec groaned in pure annoyance in that special way he only did when he was really fed up with how stupid his parabatai was being (yes, Jace was more than familiar with that particular groan). Jace grunted a little as Alec grasped him by the shoulders and pushed him back down onto the bed, glare on his face.

"I had still hoped I was wrong", sighed Alec, sounding very disappointed.

"We need to talk, Jonathan. Quite clearly", stated Magnus calmly.

The couple sat down next to each other, both facing Jace. Jace was really confused. Did they want him to leave now or not? Honestly, he was way too tired and his head felt too fuzzy for their confusing behavior that early in the day. All he wanted was to go to bed and sleep some more.

"Jace, do you... do you really think this is all just sex?", asked Alec, reaching a hand out for Jace.

"Uh... huh?", grunted Jace, completely thrown off-guard by that question, blinking a little at how dizzy he felt suddenly. "I mean, yeah sure. Obviously. What else could it be?"

Alec physically flinched away at that, staring angrily and upset at his own hands. "Yeah... What else." He huffed before getting up, feeling kind of sick all of a sudden. "Of course it's only about sex. _Everything_ with you is always only about sex. Sleeping around was always what you did best."

Jace curled in on himself a little. Of course it was. He knew he was only good for sex. He didn't really know what he had done to upset Alec, but it figured that his parabatai would realize that all Jace was was a used slut. It had only been a matter of time before Alec would realize and be repulsed enough to recoil from him. Alec stormed out of the bedroom.

"Jonathan...", growled Magnus looking angry, until he shook his head. "We will talk about this more thoroughly later. For now, I think it would be best if you get out of here. Get some fresh air. Give Alexander some time to clear his head and give me some time to cool down, or else I might just hex you into a puppy right now for upsetting Alec."

Jace gritted his teeth harshly as he nodded jerkily. It figured. It figured that they'd realize he wasn't worth their time and would only upset them. He had kind of been waiting for the moment he'd be testing out Magnus' patience to the max. The moment Magnus would kick him out. Getting out of their bedroom, he headed to his own room and got his bag out from underneath the bed. There were a couple sets of spare clothes, two seraph blades and some cash in that bag. Just in case.

/break\

Simon was barely awake by the time someone decided to ring their doorbell like the world was ending. He zombie-walked past Clary, who was already awake and chipper and smiling warmly, painting in their living room with her headphones on, listening to music without waking him. He smiled at her in that dopey, happy way, because she was so considerate and she looked so beautiful all bathed in the morning light. When he opened the door to see who oh-so eagerly needed to speak to them at too early o'clock, he was faced with the crass opposite of Clary.

Jace looked like he had been dragged through something nasty. His cheeks were flushed, eyes glassy and kind of unfocused and... was Simon imagining that, or are they actually shimmering with _tears_? No. Simon must be really out of it, because Jace Wayland would not be standing in his doorway, looking like he was five seconds from crying. And that wasn't even the most concerning part. Jace was kind of hunched in on himself, which was so not Jace, because Jace was always standing tall (as tall as physically possible anyway) and proud (cocky and arrogant, Simon's brain supplied). Right now, Jace looked small and kind of... fragile?

"Uh. Come in?", offered Simon confused, just wanting this Jace off the street before something could hurt him. "Clary! Clary, I'm pretty sure our visitor is here for you."

Seconds later and Clary stuck her head out of their living room, her headphones around her neck as she frowned curiously. Curiosity melted away for concern when she took in the way her brother-by-anything-but-blood looked. It was one of the things Simon loved the most about his girlfriend. She had fully accepted it when she had been told that Jace was her brother and she had embraced it and loved him like the brother she never had, especially after Jocelyn's death she had heavily leaned on her brother. Learning that it had been a lie, fabricated by Valentine to make them more compliant? Hadn't changed that. She had accepted him as her brother and she didn't abandon him.

It kind of broke Simon's heart when he had heard what that meant to Jace. Clary told Simon everything and since that particular thing had positively broken her heart, she needed to share it with him, but she had made him promise to never tell anyone else, especially not tell Jace that she had told him. But according to Clary, he hadn't understood it at first. Like, he couldn't understand why she would _stay_ and why she would chose to love him even though she didn't have to. He was so used to being abandoned over and over again and especially back then, on the height of the war, his abandonment issues had kind of peaked. Being abandoned by the Institute, by the Lightwood parents, having been thrown into a prison in the City of Bones like a traitor. It went completely over his head that Clary would say she didn't care if they were blood or not, that she loved him and that she would always see him as her brother. That they were family nonetheless.

And that, that was what Simon loved about Clary. She loved with all of her heart and if someone earned a place in her heart, she would fight the world for them.

"W—What's wrong, Jace?", asked Clary worried, putting her headphones and paint brush down.

"Can I crash with you guys for a while?", asked Jace, looking hopefully at her like a kicked puppy.

"Why?", wanted Clary to know, eyebrows furrowed as she led him to the living room to sit on the couch. "Tell me what happened, Jace. You were really happy yesterday. You were eager to get home when we wrapped up the mission. What exactly changed between yesterday and now?"

Jace put his bag down between his legs and rested his elbows on his knees, looking kind of beaten. "I fucked up. I dunno how, exactly? I... I still don't really understand what Alec _wanted_ from me, but I think I said the wrong thing? I dunno. But... But it made him realize it."

"Realize... what?", asked Clary, voice soft and filled to the brim with fear of what was to come.

Simon gulped dryly. This felt so very intimate and unreal to Simon. He knew Clary and Jace had those moments, he suspected she might just be the only person Jace allowed himself to be this vulnerable around. He was pretty sure Jace had already forgotten Simon was even _there_. And as much as Simon wanted to leave and give them privacy, he felt like his body had turned to stone in shock at seeing the cocky, bratty, loud-mouthed blonde so small.

"That I don't _deserve_ them", whispered Jace, hands fisted into his hair. "That I'm just good for sex, but had so much... That I'm just used and they deserve something better..."

"I don't... I don't believe that", stated Clary, voice wavering but wishing to believe in their friends. "What _happened_ , exactly, Jace? I'm... I'm sure it wasn't like that. Alec wouldn't-"

"Alec fucking flinched away from me", spat Jace angrily, shaking just a little. "H—He had his hand on my arm, but then I said something and he just pulled it away so fast, like he realized he was touching something disgusting. I really screwed up, Clary. I... I just hoped it'd last longer? Just a little longer? I knew they'd realize they didn't need me to spike things up in the bedroom and that they'd kick me out of their bed again, but... I didn't really think it'd blow up that badly? I... I don't really know what I did, but I hurt Alec. And now Magnus is back to hating me. And I just... I don't know where to go. I don't want to go to the Institute, can I stay with you guys, please? _Please_?"

"Jace, of course you can stay with us as long as you need", sighed Clary shakily.

She wrapped her arms around him and pulled him into a tight, comforting hug and that was the last thing Jace needed to break into tears, sobbing into her neck as though hiding in her arms was the only thing he needed to let go and deny the crying was happening. Clary however hissed and brought some distance between them again, making Jace choke a little on his sobs in confusion.

"Jace, you're burning up", whispered Clary, resting her hand against his forehead.

"It's okay", grunted Jace with an indifferent shrug. "It's not that bad. Just a bit dizzy. I'll be fine."

That was the last thing to make Simon's patience snap, because yes, he did care about Jace. Jace was his friend and with everything he had heard from Clary, he had a pretty good insight into the inner workings of Jace Wayland. And now he had a feverish, crying, homeless Jace sitting on his couch and he was so not going to accept that. Without another word, Simon grabbed his jacket and left the apartment to make his way over to the loft and give Alec and Magnus a piece of his mind.

/break\

"It's always just sex for Jace, isn't it?", whispered Alec lowly, sounding bitter.

He was sitting on the balcony, legs drawn up against his chest, arms wrapped around them, making the tall Shadowhunter look unusually small. It broke Magnus' heart to see his love like that. It made him want to run after Jace and turn him into a dog after all.

"I'm sure we can work with that, darling", whispered Magnus back gently.

He approached Alec and rested a hand on his lover's shoulder, prompting Alec to turn and look up at him with large, sad eyes. "Work with that? For what? Why did I even get my _hopes_ up? I thought... I thought I could really actually _have him_. But it was just sex for him."

"He's been so cuddly and affectionate though", argued Magnus. "I'm pretty sure that if we give it some more time, we could convince him that more than just sex would be even better."

Magnus had given Alec some time to calm down on his own, using that time to clean the kitchen after Alec went through the trouble of making this big, delicious breakfast for the three of them that was now growing cold and stale in their bedroom.

"Why bother?", snorted Alec sardonically, self-reprimanding. "I don't think he's ever actually had a proper _relationship_. Why did I think I could actually do it? That he'd actually fall for _me_ , after all those years? It was stupid, Magnus. I know you meant well, but it was stupid."

"It was not stupid", argued Magnus displeased. "I know you love him. I know I've fallen for him too. The past three weeks were good and you know it. We want more of it, both of us do. Don't give up now, Alexander. You're not a quitter. We'll wait until Jace gets back home, we'll sit down together and we'll _all_ talk _calmly_ and in _full sentences_ , about our emotions and our relationship."

Alec looked a bit displeased, but in the end he sighed. "You're right. I shouldn't have walked out like that. I'm the mature adult in this parabatai-bond. I should have more patience. But... just..."

"I know, darling", assured Magnus softly, kissing the top of Alec's head. "You were thinking this was _more_ and... so was I. To hear him say it wasn't... it was disappointing to me, I can't imagine what it had felt like to you. That's why I said we need to talk once everyone is a bit calmer."

Before they could continue their conversation, someone started knocking on their door as though they were trying to knock it down. Alec scowled as he got up and Magnus looked a little displeased at being interrupted too. He had cleared his schedule for a reason.

"I swear, if that's Jace who forgot his keys...", grunted Alec agitated.

The couple went to open the door just to find a very pissed-off Simon in front of them. And okay. That was new? Rare? Definitely enough to throw them both off. Simon was a sweet kind of guy who very rarely lost his temper. Right now, he looked as though he wanted to rip something apart.

"...Simon?", inquired Magnus a bit curious. "Are you alright?"

"No. No, I'm not", grunted Simon and pushed past the two. "And that's _your_ fault."

"Listen, Lewis, I don't have time for your drama right now", stated Alec plainly, irritated as he crossed his arms over his chest. "We have _our own_ stuff to take care of."

"Oh, funny. If that 'stuff' happens to be about yea tall, blonde and with heterochromia, then I think our stuff happens to be the same", snarked Simon back, vaguely motioning Jace's height.

"What?", grunted Alec confused, loosening the grip on his own arms.

Simon pinched the bridge of his nose and took a deep breath. "Look. I try really hard not to get involved in your relationship, mostly because most of the time I'm afraid you will rip me apart or you will turn me into a rat. But if your drama becomes my drama, I think it's time to meddle. I don't know what exactly happened between the three of you, because quite frankly Jace wasn't being too coherent or even sure of it himself, but why would you kick him out while he's breaking a fever? If you had to get rid of him that fast, you could have at least opened a portal for him, Magnus. It's kind of a miracle he didn't just collapse in a ditch on his way from your place to ours!"

"What are you _talking_ about, Simon?", asked Magnus sharply, patience wearing thin.

"Jace is currently sitting on my couch, being comforted by Clary, who is probably five seconds from tucking him in bed and force-feeding him soup or something because he has a fever and looked generally like a miserable stray when he asked if he could stay with us for a while."

"Stay with you for a while?", echoed Alec, growing angry again. "So what, we have an argument and he decides to run off? Real mature, Wayland."

"He didn't run off. He told us you kicked him out", said Simon, loud and slow and irritated as he turned to glare at Magnus. "He said he did 'something' to upset Alec and now _you_ are back to hating him and kicked him out. I don't know what he did or didn't do and what Alec did or didn't do, but he's miserable and feverish and crashing at my place, so it became _my_ problem. And I don't appreciate it, because – and don't tell him that – but I care about him. He's my friend. So are you and I should be Switzerland in your drama, but quite frankly I kind of don't want to because you're his parabatai and you should know better. He was so ridiculously happy lately because of whatever it is that you guys have or had or whatever and now he's heartbroken and saying shit about not being good enough for you and being too 'used' for you. That guy already has enough truck-loads of issues without you poking at them and making it worse."

"What are you even talking about? You're not making sense!", growled Alec, gritting his teeth. "He's the one who said it was all about sex! It's hardly our fault if that's all he wants!"

"That's not all he wants!", exclaimed Simon frustrated, waving his arms around wildly as he got louder than intended. "That's all he thinks he's _worth_."

"...What?", whispered Alec softly, feeling like the air got punched out of him, fight leaving him.

Simon took a very deep breath to calm down. "No. I'm not playing mediator for you guys. If you guys need threesome counseling then get a therapist. I'm just here to tell you that Jace has a fever and that he's staying with me and Clary for now and you two _need_ to fix this again."

/break\

Clary Fray could be rather intimidating when she was protecting one of her own. It was oddly upsetting for Magnus to be on the receiving end of her fiercely protective glare as she deliberately stood in the doorway to her and Simon's bedroom with her arms crossed.

"No", stated the redhead firmly. "It took me half an hour to coax him into bed and make him stop crying. No. You two have done enough for one day. He needs to get better before you two get to put any more stupid thoughts in his head."

Alec was clearly angry and he was ready to throw some choice words at Clary, so Magnus rested a gentle, calming hand on his upper arm before taking a step forward and taking on Clary's full focus and full angry gaze. Magnus was itching to get to the bottom of this all. When Simon had stood in front of their door an hour ago, he had not made a lot of sense, but among all the strangle babbling, some things had definitely stuck – Jace having a fever being the most prominent one, closely followed by him thinking Magnus had kicked him out and him thinking he was only good for sex, whatever that last one even meant. Magnus right away went about brewing a potion, now pulling exactly that out of his pocket to wave it in front of Clary as a peace offering.

"Simon mentioned a fever. This should dissolve _that_ problem within the hour", offered Magnus.

"Oh. Sure. Throw magic at it to make it go away. I'd love to see you do that with the rest of this", muttered Clary, but she still snatched the potion from him. "Now leave. He's in no condition to deal with the two of you and the things you make him feel."

Magnus gritted his teeth, because he really wanted to push past her and make his way straight to the bed where a truly miserable looking Jace was curled together under three blankets. He was flushed yet still pale, skin glistering with sweat and he was shivering a little.

"We're not leaving", growled Alec back, glaring at her. " _I'm_ not leaving. I have no idea what's going on here, I have no idea how Magnus and I earned all this hostility from you and Simon while _Jace_ was the one who's been pushing us away, but I'm fed up with it."

"Pushed you away?", asked Clary a little ridiculed as she turned her back to them so she could head over to Jace and feed him the potion. "He's done nothing but cling onto you like a life-line ever since the war ended, Alec. You can't tell me you didn't notice that. Especially after you invited him to your bed. I mean, I try to avoid the details of it all, but I know he was happy about that. And now you did something that made him feel like he's... some kind of used slut that's not good enough for you and I _hate_ hearing him talk about himself like that and he hasn't in the past three weeks and I thought he was on the right track. After everything, I thought whatever it is that the three of you have, it'd be helping him coping with all the issues he's been piling up during the war... and before."

"But that's the thing, biscuit", sighed Magnus as he sat down on the other side of the bed, gently carding his fingers through sweat-soaked blonde hair. "There was a big misunderstanding and this morning, we tried to clear it, which apparently led to an even bigger misunderstanding."

"What do you mean?", asked Clary suspiciously but also intrigued.

"We didn't invite him into our _bed_. We invited him into our _relationship_ ", stated Magnus. "Yesterday, we realized that he might not have... caught on with that. So we wanted to confront him about it this morning, alas he took it as such a given that what we had was about sex and could only be about sex that it sent us the clear message that sex is all _he_ wants out of this."

"It... really isn't", whispered Clary beneath her breath, staring at Jace with pained, worried eyes. "He just doesn't think he deserves more than that. So yes, _to him_ , it's obvious that you two wouldn't want anything more than sex from him." She paused and looked up at them both. "But you don't? You really don't? Because if you promise to me to fix this, if you promise to explain this to him and _tell_ him that he means more to you than sex, then... you can take him home with you again."

Alec didn't look pleased that Clary was setting terms and conditions to when they would get to bring their sick boyfriend home with them, but he could apparently also see the point she was making, because his face was painted with pain too. He hated hearing those things about his parabatai, he hated that he had _no idea_ those things were going on in Jace's head. He hated that him and Magnus hadn't properly talked relationship with Jace once they were all sober again instead of assuming Jace remembered what they all had drunkenly agreed upon. He wished he would have made sure to show Jace that what they had was supposed to be romance too. There were a lot of regrets and his latest one was that he had thought how pretty the flushed look on Jace's face had been this morning, instead of realizing that Jace was developing a fever from his late-night shower and from sleeping in wet clothes. Alec was still bitter about earlier, but he was also hopeful that perhaps it really all was a big misunderstanding and perhaps he really could have Jace after all.

/break\

His head was still fuzzy and ached a little when Jace woke up again. Far more disoriented than the last time he had woken up, because he _knew_ he had fallen asleep in Clary's bed – which, yeah, totally embarrassing and he was so not going to look Simon in the eyes for the next couple days. But this was Magnus' and Alec's bed. Blinking blearily, Jace looked around the bed, feeling oddly like in a deja vu kinda situation. Had he _really_ been at Clary's? Or had that just been a fever dream of sorts? He was wearing Magnus' pajamas again, not the silken ones from earlier though, but one of the thicker, warmer ones. Jace curled together tighter, snuggling more into the blankets. Maybe everything really had just been a dream and now he woke up in their bed after Magnus had brought him here last night, after the chiding about going to bed with wet clothes...?

"Hey", whispered Magnus gently, yawning himself as he got off the arm-chair in the corner of the room to walk up to the bed. "You're awake. You should have _told_ us this morning that you weren't feeling well, sweetheart. You had a bad fever, I made you a potion."

"Twas fine", mumbled Jace with a pout, burying his face in the pillow in a stubborn way.

"Oh, you're adorable when you're sick", snorted Magnus as he sat down on the bed. "How do you feel now? And don't give me 'fine', young man."

"Still a bit dizzy, but I _am_ fine", grunted Jace annoyed, rolling his eyes.

Magnus hummed pleased as he sat down more comfortably and pulled Jace closer so he could rest the Shadowhunter's head in his lap. Jace stiffened confused when Magnus started running those cunning fingers through his hair, massaging Jace's scalp in that ridiculously soothing manner of his. Magnus would sometimes do that when the warlock would come home late, just as Alec and Jace were in the afterglow of post-work sex. Jace _loved_ those fingers.

It just didn't make too much sense. If earlier hadn't been a dream, then why was he in their bed? Why was Magnus being so nice and sweet and gentle with him? Part of his brain wanted to ask, the other part was screaming bloody murder for the mere suggestion of ending this.

"You're awake. Good. I made you tea and soup. Eat", ordered Alec briskly as he entered the room.

Jace was even more confused by that. On the one hand, Alec sounded as though he was still angry with Jace, but on the other hand... he had made soup and tea? Honestly, some days Jace was sure he would never fully understand his parabatai, shared soul or not. Slowly, Jace sat up and took the tray of food from Alec. Under the watchful, critical eyes of his parabatai and his parabatai's boyfriend did Jace obediently eat his soup and drink his tea. He did so slowly, very slowly, just to make sure he could avoid whatever kind of conversation laid ahead of him. Sadly, at one point, the soup was empty and there was nothing left to occupy Jace aside from looking at the couple in front of him.

"So... uhm...", started Jace awkwardly, running his fingers through his hair. "What am I _doing_ here? I know that when I went to sleep, I was in Clary's bed..."

"You were", confirmed Magnus slowly, nodding. "And then we had a very pissed Simon standing in front of our door, so we went to retrieve our run-away puppy."

"Magnus didn't kick you out, Jace", grunted Alec as he elbowed the warlock next to him.

"That, yes. Let's start with that", agreed Magnus, rubbing his ribs. "I didn't kick you out there earlier. I sent you to clear your head, get some fresh air. You were meant to calm down and then return back _home_ so we could continue talking."

"...Oh", nodded Jace confused, eyebrows furrowed. "Uhm. Okay. I didn't..."

"You didn't realize. Yeah. You didn't realize _a lot_ ", muttered Alec beneath his breath.

"No blame", chided Magnus rather sharply. "We're just going to _talk_ , remember?"

Alec gritted his teeth hard, because it was downright impossible not to be angry at the overall situation and place blame literally all over the place – on himself, on Magnus, on Jace, on Valentine, on the whole damn world for putting them all through so much. So Alec took a deep breath.

"What you said earlier...", started Alec slowly.

"I take it back", offered Jace hastily, eyes large and pleading. "I... I don't know what it was, Alec, but can I just take it back and we _forget_ this morning happened, please? I didn't mean to hurt you."

Alec frowned displeased and then he ran his hands slowly over his face. "No, we're not just forgetting. We're going to talk about it and I don't care how much you hate talking about your feelings. Apparently, you manage well enough with _Clary_."

And okay, he didn't manage to keep that edge off the way he said her name. He had just never really gotten over his jealousy regarding the relationship Jace and Clary shared. There was so much instant trust there, even though Alec knew how hard it was to make Jace trust.

"I can... talk to her", shrugged Jace defensively.

"You can talk to _me_ ", exclaimed Alec, definitely not keeping his emotions at bay here. "I'm your parabatai! Why didn't you feel like you could trust me, Jace?"

"Because I can't talk to _you_ about my feelings _for you_!", screamed Jace back, just as emotional.

"...Feelings for me?", echoed Alec stunned, sitting back some.

Jace stared at him wide-eyed, mouth closing fast and tightly. Magnus frowned curiously as he observed the two parabatai, before deciding that perhaps _someone_ should take charge of this.

"When Alexander asked you this morning, if you thought that this between us is just sex, you said that it was, with such conviction as though there was no possibility for it being more", started Magnus slowly. "That was what made Alec so upset. Because to us, it sounded as though _you_ didn't want anything more and that it being just sex was all you wanted." Magnus raised a finger when the blonde opened his mouth. "No, no. I'm speaking now, you're listening. Thanks to Simon and Clary, we now know that you didn't mean it like that. You... You meant that you didn't see any possibility for it being more, because... you perceive yourself as not useful for more than sex?"

He very carefully phrased it as a question, because part of him still couldn't believe that their cocky, gorgeous blonde really couldn't see his own self-worth. Another part of him couldn't believe that he had never seen it before, considering Jace had been raised by Valentine, who had, as far as Magnus had witnessed during the war, done absolutely everything to twist Jace and bend him to his will.

"I...", started Jace before he wavered a little and then shrugged. "No one ever stuck around for more than sex. I'm _good_ at it. I know I'm good when it comes to sex, even if I might not be worth loving, I know I can give real good orgasms. I must have done something right when we had that one-night-stand, though I still don't really know why you'd _need_ something to spice up your sex-life. From what I can tell, that's already more than healthy as it is."

"So many things to correct there", muttered Magnus beneath his breath.

"It wasn't a one-night-stand", started Alec with a kicked-puppy-look of his own.

"What?", asked Jace very confused, tilting his head.

"It wasn't a one-night-stand, Jace", repeated Alec as he grasped the blonde's hands to hold them. "We all got really drunk that night and... I kissed you, because Magnus spent the entire night whispering dirty, filthy things about you into my ear." At that, Alec turned to glare pointedly at a more than pleased looking warlock. "And I was so shocked, I apologized like half a dozen times, but then you interrupted me by pulling me into a kiss and..."

"And that's where I interrupted", chuckled Magnus, eyes flashing golden. "Because I do have to admit that whispering filth, as Alexander put it, is one thing, but seeing you straddle his lap, grinding down and kissing him like there's no tomorrow? That looked far too tempting not to comment. So I put an offer on the table, an offer you took rather greedily."

"And... And the offer was... not for sex?", guessed Jace a little lost. "I don't remember _shit_. I mean, I kind of remember that kiss, now that you describe it, uh, like that, but..."

"And that's part of the main problem", nodded Magnus as he heaved a sigh. "We should have had another conversation, a sober conversation, earlier than right now. I invited you into our relationship. Not as a 'spice' for the bedroom, because as you so correctly pointed out, our sex-life doesn't need any spicing up. Not as a _sex toy_ for the sidelines. But as our _boyfriend_."

Jace looked doubtful and confused and it kind of really hurt Alec to see that. "Jace. When I asked you yesterday if it didn't bother you that Magnus kept ditching dates, that's when I got suspicious that you might not even be aware that we're dating, because... I was asking you if you were bothered that _our_ boyfriend kept ditching _us_ for dates and you acted so unfazed. That's why we wanted to talk about this with you this morning. And then, well, _more_ misunderstandings happened. Which just means we really need to communicate more. Which we _really_ need to."

"Boyfriend. That... came up twice now. Uhm... _Why_?", asked Jace, looking completely lost.

Alec took a very shaky breath as he looked at Jace nearly pleadingly. "How is it so hard for you to believe that we might just _love_ you, Jace?"

Mismatched eyes widened at that and Jace actually backed off some. "No. No, you don't. Not like that. I know you love me, Alec, because I'm your parabatai, but not like that."

"Still, really? That line already got ridiculous two years ago when you first said it", snorted Alec and shook his head. "I love you, Jace. I'm in love with you. I have been for so many years now. I tried very hard to stop loving you, but I never could. Instead, I guess, I managed to make Magnus fall for you too. And we've been kind of entertaining, ah, fantasies for a while now. And when you actually kissed me and agreed to what Magnus proposed, I was _so happy_ , but this morning, when you made it sound as though all of it was just about sex, it kind of broke my heart, Jace."

"I don't... I'm not...", started Jace, frowning deeply as he tried to find the proper words to make them understand. "I realized a while ago that I'm not the kind of person someone might love. You really can only have that many parents turn their back on you before you get it, you know? And I literally had _three_ sets of parents turn their backs on me. And even when I try being with someone, it's really never more than a one-night-stand or a string of those."

"It's not a one-night-stand and it's not a string of one-night-stands", stated Alec very firmly as he grasped Jace's face and pulled him close enough so their foreheads rested against one another. "We want to date you. We... thought we were already dating for the past three weeks, actually. Well, sans the dates because we've all been so busy lately with the aftermath of the war."

"But today was supposed to be romantic. For all three of us", added Magnus gently, running his fingers through golden-blonde hair. "Starting with the romantic breakfast, then lazying in bed, later on a movie and dinner. Sadly, the conversation before breakfast kind of ruined the start of it all. But there's still a lot of hours left in the day since it's only noon. So how about we turn breakfast into lunch and continue on with the day as planned?"

"...So... you still want that... even after this mess?", asked Jace with a doubtful frown.

"Relationships mean work. Working with each other to solve problems instead of just giving up when things get hard", stated Magnus simply. "We're not willing to give up that easily, sweetheart."

With a roll of his wrist did he summon the breakfast tray still sitting on the nightstand, all heated up thanks to a little magic. Scrambled eggs, eggs sunny-side-up, bacon, bagels, pancakes. Maybe not the perfect lunch, but honestly, at this point Magnus was really hungry considering how long the day had been so far. Jace hummed intrigued as he sat up some more, clearly also hungry.

"That... makes us boyfriends, then? All three of us?", asked Jace once more.

"Yes. You're not just something sweet on the sidelines", confirmed Magnus as he grabbed a piece of bacon and dangled it in front of Jace. "We want for all three of us to be equals in this relationship. Yes, Alec and I have been dating for two years now and there will be things that come naturally between him and me, but we don't want for you to feel left out by it. We need you to speak up if you feel that way and we're going to try our best to balance things out, but... we're only humans, as has been proven by this catastrophic beginning of a relationship that we've had here."

"So, will you give this a chance?", asked Alec with the most hopeful look on his face.

"Sure", shrugged Jace as he leaned forward and bit the bacon off that Magnus was dangling around.

"...Sure?", asked Magnus surprised while hand-feeding Jace the rest of the bacon. "That... does surprise me now, to be honest. After all the _insecurities_ that Simon and Clary brought to our attention this morning, I was sure it would take more convincing."

"I'll have to have words with them", muttered Jace beneath his breath before shaking his head. "I don't like the word 'insecurities'. It's just been... life-lessons and after having it beaten into me often enough from enough different fronts, I got it. But that doesn't mean I'm not selfish. You should know that I'm self-centered, I'm selfish. Just because I don't understand why you'd give me this doesn't mean I won't take it and keep it as long as I can."

"...Well", sighed Magnus a little frustrated. "That's at least something, I suppose."

"Just means we'll have to work hard to show you that we're serious", stated Alec firmly.

He had a small, happy grin on his lips as he leaned in to kiss Jace deeply, hands resting against Jace's chest as he pinned the blonde against Magnus. Jace grunted a bit surprised into the sudden kiss, but he was more than eager to deepen it. Both parabatai were flushed and grinning as they parted and returned to their breakfast turned lunch. Brunch? Yes, brunch, decided Magnus.

They ate lazily and slowly, Magnus alternating between feeding Jace and Alec and eating himself while Alec was essentially curled together around Jace at this point. Which was basically how they spent the rest of their day off. Constantly touching in some kind of way, lazily laying around together or eating. After eating, they moved to the couch and started watching movies while cuddling. Casual kisses and caresses over and over again. Plans of going out were scrapped, because even though the potion had taken off the major heat from Jace's fever, he was still not completely recovered and needed to rest some more. So cuddles and movies at home with three blankets thrown over them all and Alec and Magnus growing kind of uncomfortably warm were what happened. They didn't even speak a lot, just enjoy being together like that.

/break\

Things changed after that day. Jace noticed and he wasn't really sure how to handle it. The kisses increased. There had been kissing before, but mainly heated and passionate. Now there were also gentle pecks on the lips just in passing. Generally, it felt as though Alec and Magnus made a point of either kissing him or gently touching him whenever they passed him. Literally, whenever. And from both of them. The thing was? Jace really, _really_ enjoyed it. The way Magnus would casually run his fingers through Jace's hair in the morning, the small pecks Alec would sneak whenever they ran into each other at the Institute, the way both of them would sometimes corner Jace when they hadn't seen him all day and just pepper his neck and shoulders from both sides with kisses.

And the touching wasn't the only thing. Or rather, it was actually more of a minor thing compared to all the _new_ things. Whispered words of affection. _Sweetheart_ had become a thing, as a complimentary petname to the darling Magnus had for Alec. When Magnus left early in the morning, he would kiss both of them on the foreheads and tell them to have a good day and that he would miss them a lot and loved them. He was very specific though. He didn't just say 'I love you, have a good day' as he had for the three weeks prior, he made sure to specify that it wasn't the singular you aimed at Alec, but that he indeed had been talking to the _both_ of them this whole time. Which kind of flustered Jace a lot, if he was being honest. Then there was lunch. Magnus sometimes ordered them Chinese food that was being delivered to the Institute by an annoyed werewolf, always with a little note with Magnus chiding his Shadowhunters for not eating enough and working too hard. Alec would sometimes just pin Jace to the broad, heavy desk in his office, which wasn't new, but instead of rough, fast sex, sometimes Alec would just place kisses along Jace's body, every single kiss accompanied by a compliment or term of endearment of sorts.

Dates also became a thing. Jace suspected that both Magnus and Alec deliberately canceled other important meetings and appointments for the sake of suddenly squeezing dates in. Going out for dinner, not just in New York but they had also already eaten in Paris and Rome and other ridiculous places because they were dating with portals. A warlock was really handy for that. They went to the movies, to action movies that bored Magnus but had Alec and Jace talk about them excitedly for hours. To art exhibitions which kind of bored Jace out of his mind but delighted Magnus. To classic concerts which didn't hold Alec's attention at all but made Jace's eyes sparkle in a way that surprised Magnus who truly enjoyed them. The next day, after the piano concert they had gone to all fancied up in suits, there was a piano in the living room and a mischievous glint in Magnus' eyes. Jace mainly played when he knew he was alone in the loft though.

Having boyfriends was kind of amazing. Jace had already thought it was overwhelmingly amazing to just not wake up alone when he had still thought their relationship was just sex, because he _wasn't alone_. No one-night-stand that ended with him alone with cooling sheets and that shameful feeling of being only good for orgasms and not even post coital cuddles. Now he got all the cuddles he'd never audibly ask for. Often even just like that, without any sex beforehand. Jace loved going on dates with them, he loved the casual touching and all the kissing, he just... loved them.

And it had already been a month now. A month without them changing their minds.

"I'm home", called Magnus out, sounding exhausted.

The warlock paused surprised when Jace grabbed him by his jacket and pulled him into a gentle kiss. "Welcome home, Mag. I drew you a bath, Izzy said you came into contact with some questionable slime today? Dinner will be ready in an hour, so you have time to soak."

"...Bath? Dinner?", asked Magnus a bit dazed.

"Yes. And yes. Now go. Alec will return home in about half an hour, I called him earlier."

The warlock blinked at him curiously, but he knew better than to disagree with a drawn bath and a warm meal after the day he has had. He sighed relieved as he snapped his clothes away and sank into the warm bubble bath. Jasmine. How calming. Magnus instantly relaxed in the soothing warm water. This was surprisingly considerate from their blonde.

"So. Jace is cooking dinner. And he insisted I should join you in the bath?"

Blinking slowly, Magnus looked up at Alec who stood around a little dubiously. Smiling pleased, Magnus snapped his fingers to leave Alec naked. The archer scowled a little before he climbed into the bathtub to lean against the warlock, sighing contently.

"Is there anything I missed?", asked Magnus curiously. "He was waiting for me by the door, kissed me and then told me he was cooking dinner and had drawn a bath for me. That is... unusual behavior for him. So, tell me, did something happen that I don't know about?"

"No. I have no idea. And he was greeting me the same way", replied Alec, tilting his head back to kiss Magnus' jawline. "He's been all... bouncy all day. With mischievous, secretive smiles. It was kind of cute, but I wouldn't know any special occasion either."

"Okay. So, let's go and get dinner and see what he's got to say", declared Magnus.

Alec nodded in agreement and the two of them soaked together for another ten minutes before getting out and getting dressed in the clothes Jace had apparently already laid out for them both. They exchanged a skeptical look at this. So far, Jace had mainly just been along for the ride, and even there he had been rather tentative whenever it wasn't sexual. Dates, cuddles, romantic gestures, all had been initiated by either Magnus or Alec of the combined effort of both.

"Your timing is on point", praised Jace pleased as he placed the salads on the table.

Dinner looked festive, to say the least. Candles and flowers decorated the table, three plates with salmon filet and ribbon noodles with broccoli and what looked like white wine sauce, glasses filled with wine that would go along perfectly with the fish. And even salad beforehand, fresh and green.

"Did... you make all of this?", asked Magnus surprised as he sat down.

"Yeah", replied Jace with a half-shrug. "The mission was over so fast that I got home early."

"What a pleasant surprise", smiled Magnus, taking the glass of wine to inhale deeply. "Mh."

Alec chuckled fondly while sitting down too. The three of them ate in companionable silence for a little while, giving Alec and Magnus another moment to relax after their exhausting days. It was basically perfect, though Magnus could still feel the aching of his muscles and the buzz of his low-running magic and Alec could feel the strain on his neck and back.

"This was nice", smiled Alec as he put his cutlery down and leaned over to kiss Jace's cheek gently. "But I hope you didn't have anything planned that requires me to... do things. I've been running back and forth through the Institute all day. I just want to lay down and relax, to be honest."

"That's okay", nodded Jace when he got up. "Why don't you two just go to the living room and get comfortable on the couch? I'll join you as soon as I cleaned the table."

Magnus wanted to protest, but Jace silenced him with a gentle peck on the lips that had Magnus a little dazed once more. Jace normally only initiated kisses when they were passionate, heated and meant to lead to sex. This had just been a tender touch and nothing more. So Magnus felt inclined to obeying their blonde and found himself on his way to the couch with Alec. His eyes nearly immediately fell close as he got to lay down with Alec curled against his chest. For a few minutes, the two of them just dozed off together, soaking up each other's warmth, until soft, beautiful music started to penetrate Magnus' consciousness and poke him fully awake again. A faint smile found its way onto his lips as he recognized the beginning of Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov's _Scheherazade_. It was one of his favorite pieces and he owned vinyl copies of it in both, piano and violin version. Had their pretty blonde been considerate enough to put some soothing music on for them too before joining them on the couch? Alas, there was no third body squeezing in beside Alec and Magnus. He waited a couple moments longer, while listening to the beautiful piano piece, but when Jace simply didn't snuggle up to them, the warlock frowned displeased and opened his eyes after all. If this was one of Jace's attempts to exclude himself – which he tried, though less frequently these days compared to a month ago – then their blonde would be in quite some trouble.

Before Magnus could open his mouth to call out for Jace, the words got stuck in his throat. Jace sat in front of the sleek black piano. It wasn't Magnus' vinyl version of Rimsky-Korsakov's _Scheherazade_ , it was a live version. Jace was serenading them. It was the first time Magnus got to hear Jace play. After two weeks of having the piano, he had asked Jace if the blonde didn't like the gift since he had never played for either Alec or Magnus. Jace had assured him, nearly pleadingly, that he loved the piano and that he didn't want for them to hear him play until he was good. Because he hadn't played in years and he was rusty and he wasn't good enough. Which was a theme for their blonde, a theme both Magnus and Alec hated with a passion. It was the reason why both had made a point of complimenting Jace whenever they could – not about his looks, because that literally the one thing Jace was sure of, but his talents and his heart. They needed Jace to realize that he was worth their time and love and attention.

A small smile found its way onto Magnus' face as he drank in the sight of Jace, completely engrossed in his task, looking so serene but passionate at the same time as he played the piano. He was absolutely breathtaking. Nudging Alec, Magnus gained his archer's attention. Alec had a dopey grin on his lips as he watched Jace play. He only spared a brief moment of his attention for Magnus, kissing his softly before settling down on Magnus' chest once more and focusing on Jace. Not that Magnus could blame him; seeing Jace like that was rather fascinating and beautiful. Neither Alec nor Magnus dared to speak, not wishing to break the spell. Instead, they just laid together, recharging the energy they had spent on the day and drinking in the sight and sounds of Jace playing the piano for them. _For them_. It was pretty much perfect, actually.

"That was beautiful, sweetheart", whispered Magnus gently as the piece ended. "Thank you."

"You're even better than I remember", grinned Alec pleased. "C'mere, Jace."

"Thanks", grunted Jace with red ears as he crawled between Alec and Magnus.

"Even though I might be risking to ruin the mood here, I can't help but ask... Is there a special occasion for all of this?", inquired Magnus as he started running his fingers through Jace's hair. "The bath was very appreciated. Dinner was delicious. And being serenaded by you might just become something I could do on a daily base."

"Serenaded?", grunted Jace flustered. "Don't be a dork. I was just playing for you, nothing more."

"You're dodging the question", hummed Alec amused while kissing along Jace's neck.

"I just...", started Jace awkwardly, frowning a little. "It's been a month. And you two are still around and being... boyfriends. And I really like what we have and when I was talking to Izzy and Clary earlier, I kind of realized something. So I wanted to do something... special. I know I let you two kind of, well, pamper me during the past month, because I didn't really get it and didn't really know what to do. But when we talked about all of this, you made it pretty clear that we're _equals_. And yet we weren't. Not really. Because I let you do all the work, all the date planning and initiating stuff. So..." Jace paused, looking at them both slowly. "So I decided that I _really_ want this and that I want to show you that I want this. That I want you. That I... love you."

And oh. So that was what this was about. Jace had fallen in love with them and he had orchestrated a perfectly romantic, sweet evening to tell them. Whoever had put the idea in Jace's head that he wasn't boyfriend material, well, Magnus would love to kick all of those people.

"We love you too, Jace", whispered Alec gently before kissing Jace. "And this was... really nice."

"Indeed", drawled Magnus with a small smile. "You are definitely getting your fair share of date planning duties from now on too, sweetheart."

Jace looked pleased by this as he relaxed some more into their warmth and embrace. Alec kept placing kisses along Jace's jawline and neck while Magnus was running his fingers through Jace's hair. At one point, they managed to put in a movie, but that about the extend of moving they did that evening, mainly just content to have each other here.

/break\

Magnus paused when Jace stumbled into their apartment, trying to be quiet but being too drunk to actually manage. It prompted Alec to poke his head out of the kitchen. Magnus hissed and Alec essentially just dropped what he had been doing and rushed over to Jace. The archer cussed beneath his breath as he gently cradled Jace's face in his hands, tilting it left and right.

"What _happened_? I swear, if that she-wolf-", started Alec with a growl to his voice.

"Maia didn't do anything", huffed Jace and rolled his eyes.

Magnus smiled a little amused. Alec still had great reservations about Maia. The fact that when they had met her, she had been very adamant on killing Jace had kind of set Alec against her. All the while, Jace and Maia had somehow rekindled a strange kind of friendship over the course of the war. Magnus found it kind of amusing. This morning, Jace had told them he'd go on a bar tour with Maia, knowing Alec would decline and Magnus had a lot of clients until late in the evening today.

"What happened, sweetheart?", asked Magnus more gently while guiding Jace.

"Nothing", shrugged Jace.

"You have a _split lip_ and a _black eye_. You will tell us now, or I'll go and kick that mud's ass!"

"It wasn't Maia", groaned Jace annoyed.

"Well, it wouldn't be the first time you two roughhoused around when drunk", pointed Magnus out.

"We were drunk and had kind of a bit of a competition", shrugged Jace embarrassed, blushing a bit. "We were just flirting with the guys. It was supposed to be fun. Until the guys turned out to be giant douches who thought that flirting was a guaranteed promise for sex. When I told him that I was just helping out my friend in getting some numbers, he was kind of pissed and got pushy, so I told him to fuck off because I already got two boyfriends. He figured that meant I'm a slut and I could as well give him the time of day. I figured my fist would look good in his face. So, yeah, Maia and I kinda got dragged into a bar fight there. But you should see the other guys."

"I'd _love_ to see the other guys", growled Alec, fist clenched next to his body in anger.

Magnus had to admit, he was very tempted to go to that bar and track those bastards down to give them a piece of his mind and magic too. He did not like when someone touched what was _his_. With a gentle caress of Jace's face did Magnus heal him up fully before gently kissing him.

"Are you alright, sweetheart?", asked Magnus very seriously.

"Yeah", shrugged Jace with a crooked grin. "Wasn't my first bar-fight, Mag."

"Not physically", corrected Magnus, one eyebrow cocked. "What he said..."

"Eh. Just because some drunk, stuck-up douche doesn't get what a polyamorous relationship is, I'm not gonna curl together in a corner and cry", shrugged Jace a bit amused as he leaned over to peck Alec's lips until he managed to get rid of the frown on the archer's face. "I'm _fine_. Seriously."

"If you say so", sighed Alec and rested his forehead against Jace's.

/break\

Alec was glaring very irritated at Magnus throughout the entire meeting, even as it found its end and the other leaders left one by one, until the High Warlock and the head of the Institute were the last ones left in the office. Well, them and the mischievous blonde beneath Alec's desk.

"I swear, I hate both of you", hissed Alec as the door closed behind the werewolf alpha.

Magnus smiled charmingly, eyes flashing golden as he locked the office door. Alec kept glaring at him accusingly. This had been an important meeting – the leaders of the Institute, the warlocks, the vampires, the wolves and the Seelies, all meeting in a post-war kind of sit-in to update each other. Tighten the bonds between the races. A serious meeting. Not one where Alec needed Jace beneath his table, teasing him. Alec didn't really know if he was relieved or annoyed that Jace hadn't gotten him off though. Jace just kept Alec's cock in his mouth, occasionally teasing him with his tongue whenever Alec's dick lost interest in just laying in the warm, wet cave of Jace's cunning mouth.

"It was a dare", replied Jace from beneath the table. "And it was totally Mag's fault."

"Oh, sure. Push me in front of the bus", huffed Magnus dramatically.

"Oh please, if the bus is named Alec, you don't mind being pushed underneath", drawled Jace.

"Enough", interrupted Alec irritated as Jace crawled out from underneath the table, lips obscenely swollen and red as he licked them in slow-motion. "What _exactly_ was this about?"

"I wanted to test our puppy's cock-warming abilities", chimed Magnus delighted, a sadistic grin spreading his lips. "So I dared the sweetheart that he wouldn't be able to hold still under your table _without_ getting you off. Considering that angry erection you have there, he actually managed."

Magnus looked honestly impressed, because both him and Alec knew how eager Jace always was to getting his lovers off. That he managed to keep from bringing Alec to completion was a surprise.

"Cock-warming?", repeated Jace with a slight squeak to his voice. "T—That was what this was about?! Seriously? What the fuck, Mag?"

Magnus shrugged innocently. "It's a thing I've been... entertaining for a while now. You do have those tempting lips and you know how much I love having them spread around my dick. I was curious if I could get them wrapped around my dick for longer than a blowjob."

Jace huffed and blushed a ridiculous shade of red before hiding his face in Alec's neck. "Why are we dating a sadistic, mean warlock again, Alec?"

"Because we love him despite all of that, Jace", answered Alec dutifully. "Was it... bad?"

"What? No", muttered Jace embarrassed, peeking up at the archer. "It was kinda... exciting in a weird way? It was a challenge. I dunno. Did _you_ like it?"

"Only if I'm getting my orgasm _now_. If you two just did this to tease, then no", huffed Alec.

"Oh, no worries. Plans do involve orgasms all around", promised Magnus mischievously.

"They do?", asked Jace as he perked up. "You forgot to mention that."

"I wouldn't want to spoil the fun, sweetheart", chuckled Magnus with a wink.

"Well then, enlighten us", sighed Alec, definitely sexually frustrated after the past two hours.

Magnus grabbed Jace around the waist and pulled him close. Jace glared but allowed Magnus to manhandle him for the sake of getting orgasms out of this. Magnus pulled him up against the warlock's chest and with a wave of his hand, cleared the table that was now separating the two from a still glaring Alec. Jace offered the archer a crooked, happy grin, because damn was a sexually frustrated Alec _adorable_. A yelp ripped from Jace's throat as Magnus bent him over the table all of a sudden. Bracing himself with his hands on the opposite edge of the table, Jace turned to glare at the warlock rather pointedly, but Magnus just grinned at him wickedly.

"You're going to finish the job with Alec and I'll... have some fun at the other end", suggested Magnus with a wink. "How does that sound for you two?"

"After all the teasing, yes, sounds perfect", grunted Alec pointedly. "Jace?"

Jace grinned up at him like a shark. "One cock at each end? Sounds like twice the fun for me."

Alec snorted at that, but eagerly lined up. The desk was just low enough that with Jace laying sprawled over the table like that and Alec standing in front of it, he lined perfectly up with Jace's tempting lips. Said lips were eagerly spread for him and wrapped around his cock greedily.

"Fuck", groaned Alec, fingers clawing into thick strands of blonde hair.

"That's what I was planning to do", confirmed Magnus while pulling Jace's pants down. "Mh..."

Jace shuddered as Magnus gently cupped his ass and pulled his cheeks apart. His heart was fluttering a little. This wasn't the first time he had been bent over this desk. It was however the first time Magnus was the one to bend him over this desk. Not to mention, he felt more at their mercy like this, with Alec's cock down his throat while Magnus could basically do anything back there.

"Magnus, stop teasing him", chided Alec irritated.

"I'm just admiring the view", smirked Magnus with a wink. "You know how pretty he is."

Huffing, Alec turned to look down at Jace, noticing that the blonde was staring up at him from beneath his long lashes, cheeks flushed and lips obscenely spread around Alec's cock. Honestly, the archer could just come from that image alone, but he did his best to hold back. He refused to come before Magnus was at the very least inside of Jace. After all, he knew that Jace especially enjoyed having one dick down his throat and another up his ass. Gently, Alec ran his fingers through Jace's hair in a kind of praising manner, prompting Jace to pause and relax a little. Jace loved having his hair played with and it was the easiest way to distract the blonde.

"Okay, I need you to relax now, sweetheart", prompted Magnus as he carefully eased two lubed-up fingers into Jace, making the blonde shudder. "Thanks for distracting him, darling."

Alec offered his warlock a half-grin at that. Nothing relaxed Jace more than getting his hair pet, they had soon figured out that it was the perfect thing to do while prepping the heterochromic Shadowhunter. Jace was holding tightly onto Alec's hips, sure to leave bruises at this point, but Alec didn't mind. He kind of enjoyed having and leaving markings of their love-making.

"You know. Part of me thinks that while Magnus and I fuck you, you shouldn't get off. Just... as punishment for the last two hours of blue balls you gave me", mused Alec teasingly.

Jace whined around Alec's cock, glaring up at him. Alec kept his poker-face in check while smirking down at the blonde. He patiently waited for Jace to continue whining and begging so prettily with his eyes. Magnus chuckled amused as he watched them while fingering Jace.

"Oh, but you call _me_ out on teasing him", argued Magnus.

"Well, we'll just _see_ if he deserves to come", hummed Alec with a casual shrug.

"I do love seeing your more sadistic side, Alexander. It gives me chills", purred Magnus.

Jace whined in disagreement to that, though the whine morphed into a moan when Magnus replaced his fingers with his cock and slowly pushed him. His grip on Alec's hips tightened nearly desperately as though Alec was the only thing grounding him to this plane of existence and okay, Alec was so not pulling through with the orgasm denial because he literally could never deny Jace anything, especially not when he was being so cute. Shushing him gently, Alec returned to caressing Jace's hair soothingly. Magnus started with shallow, slow thrusts and after a couple of them, Jace started bobbing his head again some, signaling that he was ready for more. Humming pleased, Magnus picked up the speed some while Alec returned to curling his fingers into Jace's hair and tugging a little. Because aside from getting his hair pet, Jace also _really_ enjoyed when his lovers would pull his hair, especially during blowjobs. Jace moaned around the mouthful of dick in response to the stimuli. It was hard to tear his eyes off the picture of Jace, but Alec managed because there was a primal appeal in seeing Magnus in total control when he was fucking one of his boyfriends too and it was no less enchanting than the flushed, desperate look on Jace's face. Magnus' eyes were pure golden and not just for the few fleeting moments he normally flashed them, no, he was the full predator that he hid inside as he fucked Jace, hands holding onto Jace's waist in a possessive grip, telling Alec that he won't be the only one with finger-shapes bruises in the morning. Magnus took Jace with precision, knowing exactly how to angle his thrusts to make Jace whine in the cutest ways. And oh yes, _that_ was the image Alec needed to come. Just Magnus completely taking Jace apart like that. He let go of Jace's hair, something the blonde had long since come to recognize as a sign that Alec was about to come and giving Jace the chance to pull off. If anything, the blonde was putting even more effort into it until Alec came down his throat. Once his orgasm ebbed off, with the sensation of Jace swallowing around him, Alec's knees buckled and he collapsed onto the chair behind him, slowly pulling out of Jace's mouth. It was kind of cute how Jace tried going after Alec's cock, licking one last time before grinning up at Alec, still a little cum pearling on his plump lips. Alec smiled at him, gently brushing Jace's hair out of his face.

"I did good enough to earn my own orgasm?", asked Jace cheekily.

"Oh come on, you know exactly I wouldn't deny you", snorted Alec and rolled his eyes. "You know _he_ 's the one who does the denying and the sadistic things in this relationship."

" _He_ is also in the room", chided Magnus a bit amused, prying his fingers off Jace's hips to instead wrap them around Jace's cock, making the blonde groan in relief. "But yes, you do deserve your orgasm. For the good job you did warming Alec's cock, sweetheart. You did so good."

And more than the stimulation of his cock and prostate, it were those words that send Jace over the edge. Nothing got him off faster than being praised by his boyfriends in their honest, dark voices that made it sound like it was true. That Jace was more than just good enough for them. Whimpering softly, Jace came into his warlock's hand. At first, Jace had been kind of embarrassed about the sounds he made in bed with them, because he was normally a dark growler, but somehow Alec and Magnus knew exactly what buttons to push to make him whimper and whine and plead and beg and sob for mercy. Honestly? Among all the sex he has had, he has never had anything that could compare to the combination of Alec and Magnus. A strangled moan was all Jace managed when Magnus came deep inside of him, Jace's fingers weakly clawing at the table-top. Jace just collapsed boneless on the desk, chasing the taste of Alec on his tongue and feeling the warmth of Magnus filling him up. Alec very gently tried prompting Jace to get up.

"Come on, let's portal home. Rest there. Get up, before you fall asleep on my desk. Please?"

Jace whined childishly and reached out for Alec. "Carry me home, oh strong parabatai?"

He grinned cheekily at Alec who rolled his eyes at him while Magnus opened a portal for them. Jace had a smug, pleased look on his face as Alec carried him, Magnus smiling amused down at him. Having two boyfriends most definitely rocked. Especially those two.

_~*~ The End ~*~_

**Author's Note:**

> Aaaah. I saw the first episode of this half-season and I was in dire need for Jace Feels, so good timing on having this on my schedule for today :D
> 
> Jace serenading Malec is, by the way, something very important that's been stuck with me since that one scene in the first book where yes, Jace plays the piano and he's good. I love the idea of Jace playing piano just way too much and I physically need the show to put Dominic in front of a piano, please. I need that.
> 
> Also, protective sister Clary is my favorite Clary! ^o^v


End file.
